Wonderland, Part One
"Wonderland, Part One" was the first issue of the Willow: Wonderland comic book series. Synopsis A few months after the Seed had been broken and Magic had left Earth, Willow had noticed that something was wrong with the world; it had become a bleak and somber place not just for her but for others as well. With the help of Angel she had found a way to leave Earth and enter another dimension. She started with a ritual Giles had taught her which required her to draw a symbol on the ground and sacrifice some bodily fluid. Because she was afraid to go dark without anyone around her, she used spittle instead of blood. For a moment the ritual seemed to have failed, but then the circle burst into flames and showed her a path to follow. While she did she was attacked by wingheads and a bogworm. She narrowly escaped and ran into a conjurer named Marrak, who claimed to be from Earth as well. Willow questioned him because he looked positively demonic, but he assured her his visage was due to the use of dark magic. He explained that he regularly visited the dimension they were in to collect magical supplies, but that he had not been able to return to Earth. Marrak was more than eager to help her, because he longed to go home. They continued to follow the lights when suddenly attacked by a Hyberrax. Willow used magic to trap it for six hours, but Marrak killed it. Marrak explained the world they were in was unforgiving and that they needed to be to and also that they needed to eat. As they went to sleep Marrak continued to talk about wanting to go home and have his powers restored, which made Willow suspicious. The next day they traveled to a magical forest where they encountered a spring. Marrak wanted to drink, but Willow warned him the water might be cursed. She used an amulet to purify the water so they could drink, but the water caused a flood of memories to pour over her. Marrak experienced the same thing and he commented on her failure to detect this. Another being, resembling a fat blue caterpillar with human torso, appeared explaining in verse that the amulet told them the water was safe to drink, which it had been. The Zen Caterpillar explained that Lewis Carroll had based his Wonderland characters on the realm they were. The dimension could be accessed from Earth by drinking Absynthe. Willow explained the being her purpose and Marrak commented that dark magic would be the best way to bring magic back, the being instead said that dark and light were not so easily disentagled. Then suddenly, the creature they had killed earlier, now twice as large, attacked them. Continuity The story was set after "Family Reunion", but before "The Watcher". *In her inner monologue, Willow said the world was losing inspiration and that suicide rates were becoming more and more common. Willow earlier mentioned this in "Family Reunion, Part One". '' *Marrak suggested to Willow that she could be the source of magic in the world; Willow replied it seemed dangerous, foreshadowing her later being responsible for giving birth to the new seed in "The Core, Part Four". *Willow had several flashbacks of past events in her life: Her offical joining of the Scooby Gang in "The Harvest", the start of her relationship with Oz upon realizing he was a werewolf in "Phases", her magic rush with Rack in "Wrecked", her holding Tara's dead body in "Villains", and her sexual relationship with Aluwyn shown in ''"Anywhere but Here". '' Appearances Individuals *Willow Rosenberg *Marrak *Saga Vasuki *Zen Caterpillar *Buffy Summers (only in flashbacks) *Xander Harris (only in flashbacks) *Oz (only in flashbacks) *Tara Maclay (body only in flashbacks) *Aluwyn (only in flashbacks) *Angel (only mentioned) *Rupert Giles (only mentioned) Organizations and Titles *Scooby Gang (only in flashbacks) Species *Human *Wingheads *Bogworm *Hyberrax *Slayer (only in flashbacks) *Zompire (only in flashbacks) *Vampire (only in flashbacks) *Werewolf (only in flashbacks) Locations *Earth *Quor'toth *Wonderland Weapons and Objects *Scythe Death Count *One zompire, staked by Buffy. (only in flashbacks) *One unidentifed man by suicide. (only in flashbacks) *Two vampires, dusted by Buffy. (only in flashbacks) *Tara Maclay, shot by Warren. (only in flashbacks) Behind the Scenes Collections *Wonderland *Buffyverse Sampler Pop Culture References *Willow mentioned she found a way into the "magic blue yonder" with the help of Angel, the saying having originated in ''Star Trek. *While venturing deeper in the dimension, Willow quipped "Follow the hellish brick road", a paraphrased version of "Follow the yellow brick road" from the Wizard of Oz. *Upon seeing the Zen Caterpillar, Willow stated the dimension was starting to "look like a rip off of Wonderland", a reference to the famous tale "Alice & Wonderland". ''The caterpillar also mentioned the writer Lewis Caroll had based it off the dimension. Quotes Gallery Variant Cover ww1c.jpg|New York Comic Con Exclusive nl:Wonderland, Deel Eén Category:Season Nine Category:Buffy comics